Antagonist of Corticotrophin Releasing Hormone as Therapeutic Agents for the Prevention of Premature Birth In Humans

Funding Activity

Website
http://purl.org/au-research/grants/nhmrc/209853

Funding Status
Closed

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Funded Activity Summary

In developed countries the most common cause of the death of a newborn baby is premature delivery. Pre-term delivery remains the greatest cause of neonatal mortality in the western world and a major consumer of health dollars (approx. $5-7B per year in the US alone). However, a delay in the onset of labour from 20 to 25 weeks has been shown to result in a 55% greater probability of infant survival (550 fewer deaths per 1000). This project will allow: The development of new drugs that will allow the extension of pregnancy term The development of protocols that will in turn reduce neonatal mortality. Additionally we believe that these new agents will be useful in preventing the onset of labour after fetal surgery. Currently there are no effective treatments capable of substantially changing delivery dates. Available therapeutics delay the onset of labour, at best, 24 hours. However, recent exciting results from our laboratories show that rising concentrations of the placental peptide Corticotrophin Releasing Hormone (CRH) are associated with the onset of labour. Further, we have also delayed the onset of labour in pregnant sheep by infusing a relatively insoluble CRH antagonist into the sheep fetus. Labour commenced ONLY AFTER the drug was withdrawn from the mother. This project builds upon an interdisciplinary team: medicinal chemists, molecular modellers, pharmacologists and endocrinologists, to further develop an exciting Australian discovery. Successful completeion of this research will, for the first time, allow the control of pregnancy duration MAXIMISING the benefits to mother and child, reducing mortality and later life morbidities typically associated with premature birth.

Funded Activity Details

Start Date: 01-01-2002

End Date: 01-01-2004

Funding Scheme: NHMRC Project Grants

Funding Amount: $376,650.00

Funder: National Health and Medical Research Council

Research Topics

ANZSRC Field of Research (FoR)

Oral medicine and pathology

ANZSRC Socio-Economic Objective (SEO)

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Other Keywords

drug-design | molecular modelling | neo-natal mortality | organic chemistry | pre-term delivery | pregnancy | premature birth | therapeutics

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